THE FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT: HOPE Today is the first Sunday of Advent. Advent means "coming" and in this season we prepare for the coming of Christ. One of the ways we prepare for his coming is by making an Advent wreath and lighting its candles to remind us of the gifts Christ brings to the world.The Advent wreath includes many symbols to help us think about Christ and his gifts. The wreath itself is in the shape of a circle. A circle has no beginning and no end. This reminds us that there is no beginning and no end to God and that God's love and caring are forever.The light from the candles - which grows stronger each Sunday in Advent, reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world.Today we light the candle of hope. The people of Israel hoped in God's promises and were not disappointed. Again and again God delivered Israel from its enemies. We too have the same experience of salvation. That is why we believe in God's promise to send Jesus to us once again to judge the world and establish his kingdom forever upon the earth. Hope is like a light shining in a dark place. As we look at the light of this candle we celebrate the hope we have in Jesus Christ.Let us pray: Thank you God for the hope you give us. We ask that as we wait for all your promises to come true, and for Christ to come again, that you would remain present with us. Help us today, and every day to worship you, to hear your word, and to do your will by sharing your hope with each other. We ask it in the name of the one who was born in Bethlehem. Amen.

THE SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT: PEACELast Sunday we lit the first candle in our Advent Wreath, the candle of hope. We light it again as we remember that Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, will come again to fulfill all of God's promises to us. The second candle of Advent is the Candle of Peace. Peace is a word that we hear a lot. It is one of the things that we hope for. Christ brought peace when he first came to us and he will bring everlasting peace when he comes again.The prophet Isaiah called Christ "the Prince of Peace". When Jesus came he taught people the importance of being peace makers. He said that those who make peace shall be called the children of God.We light the candle of peace to remind us that Jesus is the Prince of Peace and that through him peace is found. Peace is like a light shining in a dark place. As we look at this candle we celebrate the peace we find in Jesus Christ.Let us pray: Thank you God for the peace you give us. We ask that as we wait for all your promises to come true, and for Christ to come again, that you would remain present with us. Help us today, and every day to worship you, to hear your word, and to do your will by sharing your peace with each other. We ask it in the name of the one who was born in Bethlehem. Amen.

THE THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT: JOYLast Sunday we lit the candle of peace. We light it and the candle of hope again as we remember that Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, will come again to judge the world and bring it everlasting peace. The third candle of Advent is the Candle of Joy. When the angel Gabriel told Mary that a special child would be born to her she was filled with joy. She sang a song that began with the words: "My soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”Just as the birth of Jesus gave great joy to his mother, so his presence in the world gave joy to those who had none before. He healed them and gave them hope and peace when they believed in him. From hope, peace, and love grows joy.We light the candle of joy to remind us that when Jesus is born in us we have joy and that through him there will be everlasting joy on earth.Joy is like a light shining in a dark place. As we look at this candle we celebrate the joy we find in Jesus Christ.Let us pray: Thank you God for the joy you give us. We ask that as we wait for all your promises to come true, and for Christ to come again, that you would remain present with us. Help us today, and every day to worship you, to hear your word, and to do your will by sharing your joy with each other. We ask it in the name of the one who was born in Bethlehem. Amen.

THE FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT: LOVELast Sunday we lit the candle of joy. We light it and the candles of hope and peace again as we remember that Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, will come again to fulfill all of God's promises and bring us everlasting peace and joy.The fourth candle of Advent is the Candle of Love. God's love is a perfect love. It holds nothing back. God, in love, gives us everything we need to live a life of hope and peace.The bible says that "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life." Jesus shows us God's perfect love.This is what love is like: Love is patient, love is kind and envies no one. Love is never boastful or conceited, rude or selfish. Love is not quick to take offense, it keeps no records of wrongs, it does not gloat over other people's troubles, but rejoices in the right, the good, and the true. There is nothing that love cannot face, there is no limit to its faith, to its hope, to its endurance.Love never ends. We light the candle of love to remind us that Jesus brings us God's love and shows us how to love others. Love is like a light shining in a dark place. As we look at this candle we celebrate the love we find in Jesus Christ.Let us pray: Thank you God for the love you give us. We ask that as we wait for all your promises to come true, and for Christ to come again, that you would remain present with us. Help us today, and every day to worship you, to hear your word, and to do your will by sharing your love with each other. We ask it in the name of the one who was born in Bethlehem. Amen.

Christmas Eve—Christ Candle In the past weeks in preparation for tonight we lit the candles of hope, joy, love and peace. Tonight we relight these candles and we light the Christ candle to remind us that the light of the world was born this night.In John’s Gospel we read, All things came into being through Christ, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness did not overcome it.Tonight we rejoice that Christ is born, he is the light of the world. This is good news of great joy for all people because we celebrate that Christ the Lord our Savior has been born. God came to earth to save us and restore our relationship to God through Christ. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.Jesus is our hope. He is source of our joy. He gives us love and the gift of perfect peace. Praise God for the gift of His Son.